As digital and electronic systems have grown smaller, portability has become an ever more important consideration in their design. An important component of portability is wireless connectivity, that is, the capability of digital devices to communicate with each other without being connected by cables and/or wires. Infrared radiation (IR) has long been used to achieve wireless connectivity. An example is a remote control used with a remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device, such as a video device (a television, a video cassette recorder, a video cassette player, a DVD player, a DVD recorder, a cable television receiver, a satellite television receiver, and so forth) or an audio device (a radio, a stereo, a hi-fi system, an audio cassette player, an audio cassette recorder, an audio CD player, an audio CD recorder, a home theatre system, a surround-sound system, an MP3 player, an MP3 recorder, a DVD-audio player, and a DVD-audio recorder, and so forth). Such a remote control works by sending infrared signals from the remote control to a receiver on the remote-controlled electronic device. A distinction exists between directed IR remote controls which must be generally aimed at the infrared receiver along a line-of-sight, and non-directed IR remote controls that do not need to be aimed. Prior art non-directed remote controls have worked by simply producing an IR signal so powerful that it may be used essentially anywhere within an enclosed space containing the non-directed remote control and the corresponding remote-controlled device; the inherent disadvantage is increased size and energy consumption to generate the IR beam and its associated cost.
Directed remote controls, while requiring less power and therefore being smaller and less expensive, also have several disadvantages associated with their use. One shortcoming associated with directed remote controls is that they must be pointed at the remote-controlled electronic device along an unobstructed line-of-sight. If the directed remote control is portable (as is generally the case with remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment devices), the remote control must be constantly re-aimed after being moved. Additionally, the effectiveness of a directed remote control is limited with respect to the angle-of-incidence of an infrared signal with respect to an infrared receiver on the remote-controlled electronic device.
In many remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment devices, the IR receiver is flush with a device front panel or even recessed within the front panel for protection and/or concealment. In either case, the range of incident angles over which a directed remote control is usable will be limited. It may therefore be desirable that the remote-controlled device be provided with a lens for increasing the range of incident angles over which the directed remote control may be used. In particular, it is desirable to provide a lens for the IR receiver of a remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device that may be installed on and used with a previously-purchased device (i.e., as an upgrade or retrofit), so that the retail purchaser need not purchase a new device.
Concentrators and/or lenses are a commonly-used tool for concentrating infrared radiation in preferred directions when using a directed remote control. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,633,498 issued May 27, 1997 to Savicki discloses an infrared collector that concentrates infrared radiation received from some directions more than others. U.S. Pat. No. 5,359,189 issued Oct. 15, 1994 to Savicki discloses an infrared collector having a flattened convex surface. The collector employs a non-directive concentrator to concentrate infrared radiation received in the collector on a detector. U.S. Pat. No. 5,773,819 issued Jun. 30, 1998 to Ramer et al. discloses a hemispherical light detector for improving a uniformity of detection response across a large range of incident angles. U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,949 issued Feb. 10, 1976 to Ishikawa et al. discloses an optical remote control apparatus employing a light scattering plate for broadening the aiming tolerance of a light beam transmitter. U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,108 issued Apr. 7, 1992 to Crimmins discloses an infrared communications system including one or more IR receivers having transparent hemispherical lenses and/or transparent hemispherical enclosures.
However, none of the aforementioned patents shows or teaches the use of a lens or concentrator with a remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device, such as a video device (a television, a video cassette recorder, a video cassette player, a DVD player, a DVD recorder, a cable television receiver, a satellite television receiver, and so forth) or an audio device (a radio, a stereo, a hi-fi system, an audio cassette player, an audio cassette recorder, an audio CD player, an audio CD recorder, a home theatre system, a surround-sound system, an MP3 player, an MP3 recorder, a DVD-audio player, and a DVD-audio recorder, and so forth). Neither do any of the aforementioned patents show or teach means or methods for attaching a lens or concentrator to the outside of a previously-purchased remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device having an IR receiver. None of the aforementioned patents shows or teaches a method, to be performed by a retail purchaser of a previously-purchased remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device, for upgrading the electronic entertainment device to include a lens or concentrator. None of the aforementioned patents shows or teaches a method for enabling a retail purchaser of a previously-purchased remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device to upgrade the previously-purchased remote-controlled retail electronic entertainment device to include a lens or concentrator. None of the aforementioned patents, taken singularly or in combination, is seen to disclose the instant invention as claimed.